Acrylic
by kazalene
Summary: EC with slight RN. Third and final installment of the 'Recoil' and 'Vapour' series.
1. Chapter 1

**N.B. If you haven't read 'Recoil' and 'Vapour' I suggest you do so. There are a few running jokes and themes you may not understand otherwise. **

Now I was originally going to wait before I posted this. I've written another fic that I wanted to upload first but it felt weird leaving this series unfinished and starting an E/C relationship afresh so I changed my mind. (Think of it as a writer's perk :D)

The format is a little different to 'Recoil' and 'Vapour' in that there are a few, not many, time shifts but I've tried my hardest to make everything as clear as possible for you. It's also more E/C focused as opposed to case based, although obviously I've still thrown a murder in there...just for old time's sake ;)

So here you go, first chapter of Acrylic, the third and **final **fic in the series. (And I really mean it this time)

Enjoy! x

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**Chapter One**

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_**/EC/ Thursday Morning, 11:09 /EC/**_

Calleigh glanced up at the sky. There wasn't a single cloud in sight and she found that if she stared long enough, she could see the heat waves wavering through the air towards the brilliant blue. Save from the occasional cry of a bird and the gentle lapping of the ocean, the world was quiet.

She arched her back, stretching, and shivered as the sun's heat tickled her body. She smiled as his mouth caressed her neck, moaned when he found that spot on her collarbone.

"Eric!" she whimpered. "I'm trying to sunbathe."

"Don't care," he muttered back through broken kisses.

She raised her eyebrows as his head swam into view and shot him one of her vaguely annoyed looks. His grin was too infectious however and she settled on a playful pout. Horatio had given them the day off and Eric had called in a few favours to borrow a boat. They were lying on a blanket on the deck, just relaxing in the Miami sun. Or at least she was, he clearly had other ideas.

"Eric!" she whimpered again, as his hand travelled up her thigh.

He laughed and pushed himself up onto his side, his body facing hers. She brought a hand to her face, shielding her eyes from the sun and looked back at him. Six months had passed since she'd asked him to move in and their relationship was stronger than ever.

Eric smiled. She'd tied her hair up loosely and strands were playfully falling across her shoulders. He moved to tuck one behind her ear and his eyes left hers to travel across her body. She was wearing a red bikini that was making it incredibly difficult for him to keep his hands off her; _'but then again, it was always difficult,'_ he thought with a grin.

"What?" she asked him innocently, knowing _exactly_ what that look meant.

His grin widened as he shook his head and traced a finger across her taught stomach, before he replaced it with his mouth.

Calleigh sighed and felt her body lean into his touch. With an effort, she pulled his head up and shifted their position, her knees coming to rest either side of his waist so that she was straddling him.

"Am I going to have to restrain you?" she asked, her eyes playful.

Eric laughed. His hands found hers and he threaded their fingers together.

"Is that a threat?" he arched an eyebrow.

She flashed him one of _those_ smiles and leaned over him, her hair tickling his chest, her mouth hovering just above his.

"Maybe," she breathed against his lips, before she pulled back.

She laughed when this time, _he_ whimpered. She removed her hands from his and gently began to trace the lines on his chest, a playful smile tugging at her mouth. She had her control back.

Eric tried to roll them over but she was having none of it.

"You know, for such a short person you're insanely strong."

Her mouth twitched to a pout as she feigned mock insult.

"Hey, you started this," she countered. "_I_ was trying to sunbathe."

He clasped her hands in his once more and raised his legs so she could lean back. He groaned as her knees gripped him tighter.

"So sunbathe then," he breathed.

Slowly, she leant down again, her stomach resting on his, and pulled her hands away to play with his hair.

"Don't want to," she replied, her eyes sparkling dangerously.

Eric swallowed, his throat suddenly dry. She was always at her most beautiful when she was dangerous. He reached up and captured her face in his palms, feeling her shiver at his touch. He watched that sparkle for a moment, watched it tease him, before he moved his hands up to her hair, tugging at the clip that held it in place. Eric held his breath as the blonde silk cascaded around her shoulders, down her back, over his fingers. He slid his hands down her back and pulled her tighter to him, their noses almost touching now.

Calleigh stared back at him, the sparkle still dancing. He moved to kiss her but she found his hands and pulled them up, pining them to the deck above his head. He squirmed under her and frowned at the teasing smile that was tugging at her mouth. Then slowly, agonzingly, she leant down and brushed her lips against his. Premeditating her next move, Eric wriggled his hands free and brought them back to her hair, preventing her from pulling away. He tried to deepen the kiss but she refused, instead removing his hands and moving her mouth to his jaw line.

"Calleigh," Eric moaned his annoyance.

She chuckled in response and apparently satisfied that she'd teased him enough, moved her mouth back to his. This time, she tried to deepen the kiss and Eric knew better than to refuse, at least not when she was in this mood. His hands travelled down to her hips where his fingers danced across the waistline of her bikini bottoms while her hers found his hair. His touch grew hot and she shifted her body against him, receiving a groan in his response.

Eric emitted a second groan at the sound of a cell phone. He felt her start to pull away but he wrapped his arms around her back and held her still, deepening the kiss further. But the cell continued to shrill and he could feel Calleigh's curiousity grow. He whimpered when her mouth left his and she glanced up, looking to see whose phone it was.

"Leave it," Eric muttered, as he tugged her back down and began to kiss her neck.

"It might be something important," she breathed.

Eric sighed heavily and sat them up, knowing that she wouldn't be able to ignore it. He glanced over to where they'd placed their phones and reached for the one that was buzzing and with a scowl, he handed it to her, before he restarted his assault on her neck.

"Tell Ryan to sod off," he growled through broken kisses.

She laughed and flipped open her cell.

"Duquesne?" She stifled a groan as Eric moved his mouth to that spot behind her ear.

"Calleigh hey, I'm sorry to call you on you're day off."

"M'uh huh?" She attempted to swat Eric's head away.

"Uh, we've got a problem." Ryan paused when he heard her moan. "Calleigh?"

She pushed Eric down so that his back was lying flat against the deck and gripped his arms with her free hand. _'Stop it,'_ she mouthed, her eyes flashing dangerously.

"Yeah, sorry Ryan. What's up?"

"That case we closed last week, the Hampshire one? It's going to trial tomorrow."

Calleigh watched as Eric wriggled his arms from her grasp and moved them to her waist, his hands settling on her hips.

"So?" She closed her eyes as he began to trace small circles across her abdomen.

"I've uh, I've lost some evidence." _'Please don't kill me, please don't kill me,'_ his brain repeated.

Her eyes snapped open and she froze for a moment. Eric took the opportunity to flip her over, his body now on top of hers; it was payback time. Calleigh shot him a warning look, before she erupted at Ryan.

"What! Ryan what the hell did you lose?"

Ryan winced at her tone, winced more at her moan. _'Oh God. Delko's there.'_

"Well, Horatio asked me to do a quick recheck over the case but on my way out of the evidence vault, I bumped into Cooper and sort of um, dropped the box. Everything fell out onto the floor and - " He squirmed when he heard her cry out. He forced the images from his brain and continued. "I thought I picked it all up but I must have missed something."

She pushed Eric's head away, her palm pressed against his face.

"What did you lose?" she repeated her question, dropping her hand as Eric's tongue tickled it.

"Evidence item number twelve," he replied, hoping to stall her by not telling her exactly what it was that he'd lost so that she had to think for a moment. He felt his body tense as he waited for the onslaught.

Calleigh struggled to figure out whom she wanted to kill first as Eric's mouth made his way down her body.

"Ryan," she squirmed. "If you don't tell me that you've found it in the next five seconds, I am going to reach through this phone and strangle you."

There was a pause.

"Is that before or after you finish having sex with Eric?"

She heard Eric laugh and elbowed him sharply in the ribs. She raised her eyebrows and gave him a look that said, _'I could have elbowed somewhere else,'_ when he frowned back at her.

"Ryan," she began, her voice tight. "I am not having sex with Eric and even if I were, that is really none of you're business - " Eric's actions made her squirm _again_ and she fought to string a coherent sentence together. "Now I'm serious! We need - " She bit her lip, trying to silence her cry."We need that evidence to seal the case! I'm not quite sure what you expect me to do about it anyway!" she finally gasped.

She stifled another moan as Eric's hand travelled down her body and began to caress the skin just above the top of her bikini bottoms. _'He was going to pay for this.'_

"I know, I'm sorry Calleigh it's just – " he was cut off by Eric who had grabbed the phone from Calleigh's hand.

"Ryan, you incompetent prat. Retrace your steps, find it and don't call again. If you still have a problem get a motion to delay trial and Calleigh will deal with it _and_ you, tomorrow. Right now, she's busy."

Before Ryan could reply, Eric hung up the phone. He threw the cell across the deck and returned his mouth back to Calleigh. She pulled his head up to look at her and he couldn't help but smile. Her eyes were that deep shade of green that told him that she was most certainly _**not**_ happy and that he was _**definitely**_ going to pay. Before she could erupt however, he stopped her mouth with a kiss and began his assault on her body once more, leaving her powerless to stop him.

"Eric!" she whimpered. _'She hated that he could do this to her.'_

He laughed. _'He loved that he could do this to her.'_

_**/EC/ A week earlier, 09:02 /EC/**_

Calleigh was in ballistics. She had just finished filling out a report on a case they'd worked a couple of days ago and she was in serious need of some coffee, preferably cubano. A smile tugged at her mouth as she thought of Eric but it quickly turned to a grimace when her cell went.

"Duquesne?"

"Calleigh, it's Tripp. We've got a DB. Victim's name is Susan Hampshire."

She listened patiently as he gave her directions to parking lot in the Gables and with a sigh, she reached for her kit. She rolled her eyes as she left the room; _'there goes coffee.'_

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I'll try and post the next chapter up tomorrow but I'm a little bogged down with work right now.

I also haven't finished this fic completely, I need to do some tweaking so updates might not be as fast as usual.

Reviews very much appreciated :D


	2. Chapter 2

Okay, after writing two essays out of four and discovering my next essay is regarding the ideological roots of communism and fascism...I've decided I need a break.

So, I figured I would upload chapter two.

Enjoy! x

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**Chapter Two**

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Ryan shivered as he entered the crime scene; he'd never particularly liked parking lots. They were usually always poorly lit, cold, echoey and quite frankly, just plain creepy. He tensed as a shadow moved behind him and jumped when a hand slapped him on the back.

"You O.K. Ryan?" Eric grinned at him as he walked past.

"Uh huh," he replied, albeit unconvincingly.

Eric raised his eyebrows at the other man's response and headed over to Alexx and Horatio. They were knelt beside an attractive, young female who judging from her attire, had obviously been out to a party or a club before her death. Her blonde hair was matted with an angry red substance where she'd been struck with something and a few small, shallow cuts showered her otherwise perfect complexion. Eric sighed; '_it never got any easier_.'

"We got a cause of death Alexx?" he asked, tearing his gaze away.

"Poor baby suffered a brain haemorrhage. A blow to the head fractured her skull."

Eric watched as she gently lifted the victim's head up and turned it so that he could get a better look. The cut looked jagged, almost like it had been torn open.

"Whatever was used to hit her with was blunt," Alexx confirmed his observation.

"Alexx…" Horatio began, tilting his head to the side. "Alexx what about that mark?"

Eric looked down at where his boss was pointing. On the girl's arm were three deep grazes.

"Looks like she was scratched, perhaps the result of a struggle?"

Eric looked around the parking lot and his eyes settled onto a blue Mercedes a few feet away. Calleigh was bent next to it, inspecting the vehicle. He noticed that glass shards were strewn along the ground on the left side of the car.

"Alexx, could her facial injuries be a result of shattered glass?"

Horatio followed Eric's gaze and observed that the left front window of the Mercedes had been smashed; just a few jagged shards were all that was left of it.

Alexx studied the victim's cuts, one in particular catching her eye and she reached for her kit and grabbed a pair of tweezers. The two men watched as she moved them over one of the small cuts and pulled out a tiny piece of glass.

"Does that answer your question?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

Horatio stood up and placed his hands on his hips.

"Okay…thank you Alexx. Rough time of death?"

"Judging by the extent of the rigor mortis, she's been dead a while. I'd say since the early hours of this morning. Poor baby must have been on her way home."

Eric nodded, remembering the times when he used to go out every night. He couldn't imagine living that life now. Sure, he and Calleigh still went out, but to slightly more conservative places than he used to go to; you wouldn't catch anyone 'toothing' in them for example. He tensed a little at the memory; he couldn't help but feel a little ashamed of his previous behaviour, but it was behind him now and besides, he had Calleigh and no one he'd been with had even come close to her, '_could never come close.'_

"You know," he began. "The Miami nightlife is pretty wild. The mornings after can be a killer, even if you didn't drink anything. The sheer volume of the music is enough to make your ears hurt for days. Sometimes I used to stumble into bed not wanting to wake up."

Horatio looked down at the ground for a moment, before he slowly lifted his head back up.

"Well Eric, Susan here," he paused, shifting his body to the side. "Susan here didn't."

Eric looked away and smiled; he felt he could play the song without ever having seen the music...

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh was studying the shattered glass window carefully. There was more glass inside the car than outside which told her that the window had caved from the exterior. She noticed the translucent red stains that some of the smaller shards had on them and took a swab. Calleigh then reached for her luminal and applied it to the sample, smiling at the colour the cotton bud turned; _'it had always been her favourite.'_ She was in the process of collecting swabs for Valera when she felt Eric move behind her.

"Something you want?" she teased, keeping her eyes focused on her work.

She heard him chuckle and he moved closer.

"Already got it," he whispered.

Calleigh turned to face him and flashed him one of _those_ smiles as she bent down to place the swabs in her kit.

"What've you found?" he asked.

"Blood," she replied simply, handing him some gloves. "Now glove up and help me collect the rest of this glass, chances are the attacker cut themselves."

Eric smiled back at her and did as he was told. He bent down next to her and they fell into a comfortable silence. His mind wandered while they worked. There was something that he'd been thinking about for a while now but he wasn't quite sure how to pull it off; knowing Calleigh, it wasn't going to be easy…

He suddenly caught sight of a possible fingerprint on one of the larger shards and his trail of thought diminished.

Calleigh looked up as he reached for his brush. She watched him dust the glass and without him having to ask, she passed him the ASM.

He grinned back his thank you.

With a smile, she picked up the last remaining shard of glass, or at least the last remaining shard of glass that was outside of the car; they hadn't even begun to process that yet.

"Hey Calleigh?"

She looked over to where the voice had come from. Natalia was stood over the other side of the crime scene, near a concrete pillar.

"I'll just be a minute," she told Eric as she headed for the other CSI.

"Counting the seconds already," he shot back.

Calleigh rolled her eyes and shook her head. She couldn't however, shake away the smile that spread across her mouth as she walked away.

_**/EC/**_

Natalia was crouched over something, peering at it intently. She heard Calleigh's heels walk towards her and looked up.

"Hey, Nat. What's up?"

"What does this look like to you?" Natalia answered Calleigh's question with one of her own.

Calleigh frowned and bent down next to her. On the floor was an almost transparent, white substance. It had congealed into a small lump and Natalia was having a hard time removing it from the concrete floor of the car lot.

"Some kind of adhesive?" she eventually replied.

"Maybe. I'll get this back to the lab and run it through trace."

Calleigh nodded. "You find anything else?"

"No, Tripp's been talking to the guy that called the murder in. He's got no connection to her, just found her here this morning. Ryan's running a background check on our vic though. He's trying to find out where she'd been last night."

Calleigh nodded and watched as Natalia continued to attempt to pry the substance off the floor.

"You got anything that could act like a chisel?" she suggested.

Natalia considered this for a moment and reached for the nail file she had in her kit; she'd broken too many fingernails whilst processing crime scenes to know that you didn't come unprepared.

"You and Eric nearly done here?" she asked while she worked.

Calleigh stood up and pushed her hair back with a sigh.

"We're going to be here a while; there's a hell of a lot of glass inside the car."

Natalia nodded and smiled as Calleigh moved to leave.

"Okay, don't do anything I wouldn't do," she teased, raising her eyebrows knowingly.

Calleigh turned round to face her, her eyes narrowing considerably and Natalia knew she was on dangerous territory. Calleigh was a very private person and at work she liked to maintain a professional image at all times, even if Eric tried his hardest to deter her, which he often did. Instead of erupting however, Calleigh chose a different approach.

"Don't you mean, don't do anything you and Ryan wouldn't do?" she replied, her eyes shining playfully, her tone innocent.

'_Touché,' _Natalia thought as she forced an awkward smile and she quickly dropped her eyes, pretending to focus on removing the strange substance from the ground. She and Ryan had a very different relationship to Eric and Calleigh. For one, it wasn't as deep, but then Eric and Calleigh had one of those bonds that she only thought existed in fantasies. Her relationship with Ryan was however, progressing nicely, if a little slowly. She pulled away from her thoughts when with a triumphant sigh, she managed to loosen the adhesive substance enough so that she could collect it.

_**/EC/**_

Eric was dusting the steering wheel for prints as Calleigh approached. She smiled at his face; his brow was furrowed, signalling that he was concentrating on something and his eyes were shining curiously. She continued to watch him for a moment, trying to read the little smile that was playing with his mouth. _'He was planning something.' _He looked up when he felt her gaze.

"Something you want?" he teased, echoing her earlier words.

"Already got it," she replied, playing along.

He laughed and applied the ASM to a fingerprint that he'd just found. Calleigh bit her lip, her curiosity growing and if they weren't in the middle of processing a crime scene, she would have gotten whatever he was considering out of him. For the hundredth time since she'd been with Eric, she found herself cursing her professionalism. The slow movement of something suddenly captured her attention and she glanced to the side. Eric sensed her discovery and followed her gaze.

"We got CCTV," he grinned.

She returned the smile and moved her head, looking for Ryan. He was stood in the centre of the parking lot, talking animatedly on his phone. His eyes were flickering around the crime scene, his senses on the highest alert for something, anything. She thought she could even see him shiver every now and then.

"Think Ryan's scared of car parks," Eric laughed behind her.

Calleigh grinned and rolled her eyes.

"I'm just going to ask him to get hold of the video footage for me. You okay here for a moment?" she began to walk away.

"Well that depends," his voice made her stop.

"On?" she asked, a little puzzled, as she turned round.

"On whether you're actually going to help me process this car or not when you come back," he wiggled his eyebrows playfully.

She laughed and took a step towards him.

"Well that depends," she mimicked him.

"On?"

"On whether I do actually come back," she replied, her eyes playful.

Eric watched her go, her hips swaying that little bit more because she knew that he was watching. A grin spread across his face as he made a decision. He was going to have to be careful though; Calleigh's perceptual skills were almost superhuman. He knew he had a lot of planning to do and so with a wistful sigh and his newfound predicament, he settled back into his work.

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Right, guess I'll get back to essay writing.

I probably won't have a chance to post tomorrow as I've got a pretty hectic schedule planned and I'll only be at home during the morning. But I will update ASAP.

As always, reviews very much appreciated :D


	3. Chapter 3

I am **so** glad that it's the weekend!

And seeing how I'm in a good mood, I thought I'd post chapter three :D

**Side note: If you come across an unusual spelling please keep in mind that I live in England, not America. I take English Literature and spelling is a major thing in our essays and exams so I don't want to get into the habit of spelling things the American way because it would be incorrect with regards to the way we spell things. (That's why I spelt 'Vapor' like 'Vapour' and 'realize' like 'realise') If I really have spelt something wrong though, then ignore what I just said :D**

Enjoy! x

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**Chapter Three**

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Ryan closed his cell as Calleigh approached. He breathed a sigh of relief, grateful for the company; the parking lot was starting to make him a bit claustrophobic and he couldn't wait to get out of there.

"Hey Calleigh, I've managed to track down Susan's family. Patrol is on their way to break the news and to try and find out where she was last night. In the meantime, Tripp's doing a tour of all the nearby bars and clubs to see if anyone saw her."

Calleigh gave him a small smile and looked away for a moment. The worst part of her job wasn't seeing the victims; it was breaking the news of their deaths. With a DB there was no emotion but with a grieving relative or friend or lover, there was so much pain that it was enough to make you feel emotionally sick and unless you developed a way to deal with it, it haunted you.

"Could you get hold of that CCTV up there for me? We might be able to see our killer," she changed the subject.

Ryan looked over to where she gestured and nodded.

"Sure, I'll get it to Cooper."

"Thank you Ryan," she smiled at him sweetly. "Hey, do you know if anyone's checked the registry of the car?"

"Yeah, Tripp said it belonged to our victim."

She smiled him another 'thank you' and he watched her walk back over to the Mercedes. He moved his eyes to the figure that was currently walking towards him. Ryan smiled at her as she approached.

"I'm off back to the lab. We still on for tonight?" Natalia asked him, her smile mirroring his.

"Of course," he replied, his smile growing. "Table's booked for seven thirty. I'll pick you up around seven."

"Good." She brushed past him as she moved for the exit and glanced over her shoulder as she walked away. "Don't be late."

Ryan's smile widened further and he moved his hand to his hip where she'd brushed against him, stilling the tingle that played there. They'd arranged to go out for dinner to a new restaurant that had recently opened in South Beach and he was really looking forward to it. He continued to watch as she disappeared out of the parking lot and then with a small sigh, he headed for the security kiosk, frowning when he found it was locked. Ryan suddenly became aware of the absence of any security guards what-so-ever. Puzzled, he took out his cell once more and began to make calls in an attempt to find out who the owner of the parking lot was.

_**/EC/**_

Eric sighed as he picked up what must have been the millionth piece of glass from inside the car. He took a moment to study the interior and he couldn't help but appreciate the design; '_this car was hot'_. He moved his gaze to look out the shattered window when he heard Calleigh's heels walk towards him.

"Alrighty," she drawled. "Ryan's getting the CCTV, I think I just saw Natalia heading back to the lab and Horatio has gone with Alexx so I'm all yours. Seeing how you're in the front, I'll take the back," she rushed, efficient as ever.

Eric considered replying with what was perhaps a juvenile comment involving him, Calleigh and a backseat, but one look at her face told him she knew exactly what he was thinking and promised him serious pain if he let it leave his mouth. So instead, he flashed her a playful grin and went back to collecting the glass. His plan was slowly beginning to formulate in his mind but he knew better than to think about it with her in such close proximity. He could tell she'd already detected something and he didn't want to give her any further ammunition to question him and so with an effort, he forced it out of his head.

"There's not a lot of glass back here. Must've have been a clean break," he heard Calleigh observe.

Eric looked up and nodded.

"Yeah, wonder what shattered the window anyway?"

Calleigh shrugged.

"Perhaps the same tool that killed Susan."

They both considered this for a moment as potential murder weapons flashed through their minds. Whatever it was had to be heavy, as well as blunt.

"Well maybe Alexx'll be able to help us after the autopsy?" Eric stated more than anything as he picked up _another_ shard of glass.

Calleigh nodded and they fell into a comfortable silence that was only broken by the occasional flirtatious smile as their fingers touched or whenever they caught each other's eye. She'd always loved how comfortable they were with one another; sometimes words weren't even necessary between them.

Once she was satisfied that she had collected all of the glass in the back of the car, she joined Eric in the front and helped him pick up the remaining shards, always checking for prints or blood as she did so.

_**/EC/**_

Ryan snapped his cell shut. He'd been able to find out that the parking lot was regulated by the mayor's office and had arranged for someone to come down and get the tape for him. He headed over to the Mercedes and poked his head through the door.

"Someone's going to come and get the CCTV for us. While I wait, is there anything you want me to do?"

He hoped that Calleigh would be able to give him a job; he needed something to take his mind off their current surroundings.

"Thank you Ryan. So far we've concentrated on the car while Natalia focused on that corner. Could you process the area in between?"

Ryan smiled back at her genuinely and headed back to the hummer to get his kit; she never let him down.

_**/EC/**_

Natalia was back at the lab running the adhesive substance she'd found through trace. She reached for the paper that the printer rolled off and observed the findings.

"Miss. Boa Vista?" Horatio stepped into the room.

"I found glue at the crime scene," she looked up at him a little puzzled. "Did Alexx find anything else in the autopsy?"

Horatio shifted his weight and moved his hands to his hips.

"Yes...there were traces of rust around her head wound."

"So we're looking for a murder weapon made of iron?" she deduced.

"I think," he titled his head. "I think that's likely."

She watched him leave the room and chuckled to herself. She was well aware of the team's joke of hearing music everytime H delivered a one-liner, but she'd never actually told anyone what song it was that she heard and with a final chuckle, she reached for her cell; Guns N' Roses' 'Welcome to the Jungle' fading out as she dialed the number.

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh and Eric had just finished processing the car when her phone went.

"Duquesne?" she answered.

Eric watched as she listened patiently to a voice on the other end of her cell. She bit her lip and frowned; indicating she was puzzled.

"Okay, thanks. I'll see you back at the lab shortly," she eventually replied.

He gently touched her arm as she shut her cell and looked at her expectantly.

"That was Natalia. Apparently we're looking for a rusted murder weapon, one that's perhaps made out of iron."

Eric cocked his head to the side for a moment, toying with an idea. _'It was definitely blunt and heavy enough.'_

Calleigh noticed his internal thought.

"What are you thinking?" she asked him curiously.

"How about a tire iron?"

"The bar for changing tires?"

He nodded and moved over to the trunk of the car. She came to stand beside him as he popped it and watched as he lifted the carpet up and inspected the standard tools that most cars had. Calleigh raised her eyebrows at the sight; the tire iron was missing. She turned to face Eric and flashed him one of _those_ smiles.

"That's one of the reasons I love you," she told him.

"And here's me thinking you only wanted me for my body," he teased.

"Oh, that too," she deadpanned playfully, before she brought the conversation into focus once more. "You know, the tire iron could also have been used to smash the window.

Calleigh watched as Eric smiled and nodded, but switched her gaze to Ryan when out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of him placing something into an evidence bag.

"Ryan?" she called.

He looked up and smiled; _'she didn't miss a thing.'_

"I've found a fragment of something, not quite sure what though."

He stood up and brought it over to her. She peered into the bag and frowned; it was small and square save from the little jagged edge from where it had been snapped off something.

"Is that the security guard?" Eric nodded in the direction of a rapidly approaching figure.

Ryan followed the direction of his gaze.

"Think so, can you guys take this back to the lab with you? I'll get hold of the CCTV and see you back there."

"Of course," Calleigh smiled at him. "See you later."

Eric nodded a goodbye and reached for Calleigh's hand, threading his fingers through hers and together, they headed back to the hummer.

_**/EC/**_

Ryan sighed impatiently as the security guard fiddled with the key to the kiosk's lock. He desperately wanted to get out of the parking lot and now Calleigh and Eric had left, he was starting to feel a little panicky. He breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the lock click and followed the guard into the security kiosk.

"How come this place isn't monitored 24 hours?" he asked, a little puzzled.

The guard shrugged.

"This isn't a well used car park and we're a little short staffed. We tend to get stationed in places where we're needed the most. Most of the time, a CCTV camera is enough of a threat to prevent any crime anyway."

Ryan nodded and smiled as the man handed him the tape. He said his goodbyes and with a wave, headed for the exit, perhaps walking a little faster than he needed to. _'He hated parking lots.'_

**_/EC/_**

Valera watched through the glass as two people stepped out of the elevator. She sighed wistfully and noticed they were more in love than ever; _'things were starting to get a little boring around here.'_ Since Stetler had backed down over the 'no relationships between co-workers policy' there was very little drama to keep her going and she was in desperate need of a shake up or something to gossip about at least. It wasn't that she wasn't happy for Eric and Calleigh, it was just that seeing them everday reminded her of something that she didn't have and together with Ryan and Natalia's relationship, the lab was starting to turn into 'Cupid's love shack'...

"Valera, are you okay?" Calleigh's voice interrupted her trail of thought.

Valera turned to face her and nodded quickly; she hadn't even been aware that the blonde had entered the room. Temporarily stilling her thoughts, she eyed the evidence bag that Calleigh held in her hands.

"So what have you got for me?"

Calleigh smiled and handed her the swabs that she'd collected from the glass.

Valera sighed and got to work as Calleigh settled herself down on a stool, waiting for the results. She watched as Valera cut sections off the swabs and added them to a solution in a test tube and Calleigh couldn't help noticing that the DNA specialist was obviously thinking about something. She smiled again and began to count mentally as she watched Valera struggle to hold her question in. _'Three, Two, One...'_

"Hey Calleigh?" Valera suddenly looked up, unaware that she was so predictable.

Calleigh raised her eyebrows in response.

"Where do you see your relationship with Eric going?"

Calleigh tensed. She shouldn't be surprised at the outburst; _'this was Valera she was talking to',_ but she still felt uncomfortable with the question all the same; it really wasn't any of Valera's business. The concept was also a little scary; whilst Eric had overridden all of her defensive reflexes, they were still there, hovering in the background and she considered how best to answer.

Valera eyed her curiously but before she could offer a prompt, the centrifuge 'beeped'. Valera sighed and reached for the paper that rolled off the printer.

"I've got two DNA samples here. Both XX."

Calleigh looked up and pounced at the opportunity to change the subject.

"Can you run them through CODIS?"

Valera nodded and did as she was asked. She knew not to push the previous conversation any further; the moment was gone and so instead, she settled for suspicious glances at the blonde CSI.

Calleigh shifted her body under Valera's gaze, which was almost as uncomfortable as her question. She tried to concentrate on the flashing images on the computer screen and welcomed the little 'beep' that CODIS emitted. She watched as Valera studied the information.

"First sample matches our victim, Susan Hampshire. She had a prior for trespassing. I'll just run the next one through now."

Calleigh nodded, an enactment of the crime scene creeping into her head. She bit her lip as she considered the possible scenarios as to how Susan ended up with the cuts on her face. _'Was she in the car when the window was smashed? Did someone smash the window and then in a struggle, throw Susan down onto the glass?'_ She was interrupted by a second 'beep' from CODIS.

"Can't get a match. Whoever's DNA this is, isn't in the database," Valera informed her.

Calleigh frowned.

"Okay, Valera can you give me the details on Susan's prior?"

"Yeah, charges were installed by a Holly Jackson. She won a temporary restraining order against Susan."

"Thank you Valera," Calleigh replied with a smile and she reached for her cell before she left the room.

_**/EC/**_

"Tripp?"

"Hey Frank, it's Calleigh. Did you get any hits on your bar crawl?"

"Yeah, Susan had been at the 'Atarazana Nightclub' all night with some friends. I got two names; Derek Williams and Holly Jackson."

Calleigh eyes widened.

"But Ms. Jackson had a temporary restraining order against her."

"Well I guess they made up?" Frank replied.

"Could you bring both Derek and Holly in for me? I'd like to have a word with them."

"Already in the processes of doing so; patrol's locating them now."

Calleigh smiled into her phone.

"Thank you Frank."

"No problem, I'll let you know when they're here."

She heard a click and he was gone. Calleigh stopped walking when she reached the door of the Trace lab. Through the glass, she could see that Eric was running the two prints he'd found through AFIS. She stood there watching him for a moment, Valera's earlier question reverberating round her brain. She bit her lip as the answer popped into her mind and with an effort, she dispelled her thoughts and entered the room.

* * *

Suspense is such a fun thing, don't you think?

As it's the weekend, I should have the time to post the next chapter up tomorrow.

Reviews very much appreciated :D

* * *


	4. Chapter 4

I've literally just written this chapter so I hope it makes sense.

Hope you're all enjoying the weekend. It's finally stopped raining so I think I might pop out and do some shopping :D

Anyway, enjoy! x

* * *

**Chapter Four**

* * *

Eric smiled when he felt her enter the Trace lab. He stayed silent until she closed the distance between them and came to stand next to him.

"What did you get off CODIS?" he asked.

She sighed and moved her position so that her back was leant against the table, her body now facing him.

"Well we have Susan's blood which means she definitely came into contact with the glass, but we also managed to pick up a second blood sample that CODIS can't help us with." She crossed her arms and shifted her back against the table. "You know, our job would be so much easier if DNA samples from the world's population were compulsory."

He laughed, realising how ironic her sentence was. Calleigh, the textbook example of privacy, had just inadvertently stood up for its antithesis; if they made DNA samples compulsory there would be a public outcry against the intrusion of the state. He shifted his position to stand in front of her and placed his palms down on the table either side of her waist, trapping her between his body and the table.

"What?" she asked him, a little puzzled.

Eric ran a hand through her hair and smiled.

"It's just that I thought privacy was a big issue for you, but if not then…" he leaned in to kiss her, well aware that they were in full view of Valera's DNA lab.

Calleigh pulled her head back and placed her hands on his chest, shooting him a warning look.

"I never said it wasn't."

He grinned back at her playfully and reached past her to the computer screen, turning it to an angle that she could see.

"Well, maybe AFIS can help us. The prints I collected from the steering wheel were Susan's and I was just about to run the print from the glass."

She watched as he hit 'search' and the screen flickered into life. Her eyes stayed focused on the moving images as she felt Eric flex his hands against her waist, repositioning his body slightly to get a better look at the screen. While AFIS continued to search, his mind wandered back to his plan; he'd mentally taken care of everything except perhaps the most important thing and he was a little stuck. Eric cocked his head to the side as he considered what it should be like and frowned when he realised that he didn't have a clue where to begin to look.

"What's wrong?" she asked him softly, a little concerned.

He snapped his eyes back to Calleigh, unaware that she'd been watching him and his brain went into panic mode. He knew he wouldn't be able to shrug it off as nothing; Calleigh wouldn't let it drop and he tensed as he struggled to think of a possible excuse as to what was bothering him. He held in a sigh of relief when AFIS answered his prayers with a little 'beep' and he averted his eyes from hers to the computer screen.

Calleigh continued to watch him for a moment, ignoring the interruption from AFIS. She bit her lip in her puzzlement and with an effort, she dragged her eyes to look at the two words that were flashing on the screen; _'no match.'_ She sighed irritably and Eric moved backwards to make a note in the case report. Her gaze settled onto him once more and she tensed as annoyance seeped in; not only did they have an as yet unidentified blood sample, they now had anonymous fingerprints as well and that, together with the knowledge that Eric was hiding something from her, was making her a little cranky.

Eric finally allowed himself to look up and his eyes met hers. A deep green was creeping in and he knew that he had to take action quickly to prevent any further suspicion. In one smooth movement he stepped towards her and wrapped his arms around her body, pulling her in tight. He couldn't shed any light on the fingerprints or the blood at this point but he could at least attempt to reassure her that everything was okay with them.

"I'm fine, I promise," he whispered as he rested his forehead on hers, and he meant it. Whilst keeping this from her was going to be torture, he'd never felt happier.

She held his gaze; _'he looked sincere enough.'_ Eventually, she nodded and apparently satisfied that he was telling her the truth, she smiled at him. She didn't need him to tell her exactly what was going on – '_although that would be nice_' - what was more important however, was that he was O.K. She opened her mouth to speak but her cell buzzed and Eric unclipped it from her waist and handed it to her.

"Duquesne?"

"Calleigh, hey it's Frank. Holly Jackson and Derek Williams have just dropped in. Horatio is waiting down in interrogation for you."

"Okay, thank you," she stepped out of Eric's embrace. "I'm on my way."

Eric watched as she snapped her phone shut and reached for the evidence bag that Ryan had asked them to take back to the lab.

"Can you see if you can find out what this is? I'm just going to ask Ms. Jackson and Mr. Williams some questions."

He nodded and gently removed the bag from her hand.

"Sure, I'll see you later."

He was surprised when she took a step towards him and pulled his head down so that his ear was level with her mouth.

"I love you," she breathed, before she kissed him on the cheek and left the room.

Eric smiled and watched her go, his ear tingling from her breath, his heart participating in an acrobatic show. His smile widened when his brain kicked in with renewed force and he turned back to the desk to begin processing the small fragment that Ryan had found, not missing the curious look that Valera was giving him through the glass.

_**/EC/**_

Valera was puzzled. She'd just witnessed an odd exchange between the two CSI's and obviously it was still filled with that unequivocal emotion called love, but something was going on and she wanted to know what. She moved her head to the left and made eye contact with Cooper, trying to deduce if he'd seen anything. He shrugged back at her and turned away when Ryan entered his Tech lab.

"What have you got for me?"

"CCTV of the parking lot. We might be able to see our killer." Ryan handed the tape to Cooper and watched as he placed it into the machine.

"Okay, just a second." Cooper tapped a few buttons and the screen flickered into life.

The two men watched as various people walked in and out of the parking lot, some passengers, some drivers. Most were dressed up, obviously heading out to the nearby bars and clubs but they had yet to see Susan. Eventually, a blue Mercedes pulled up and she got out. They watched as she opened the back door to change her comfy driving shoes into what looked like torture heels and then walked out of the car park. Ryan checked the time at the bottom of the screen; 21:45. He then looked down at the two photographs of Derek Williams and Holly Jackson that Tripp had faxed him; they had yet to arrive. Cooper moved to hit 'fast-forward' but Ryan stopped him.

"No don't, we've got to wait to see if these two people arrive," he showed Dan the photographs.

Dan glanced at the running time of the tape and grimaced; they were going to be here a while.

_**/EC/**_

Horatio was peering through the glass of the interrogation room, studying the two occupants carefully.

"Hey handsome," a southern voice drawled. "You ready?"

Horatio turned to look at his number two and smiled.

"Calleigh…whenever you are."

She flashed him a grin and took a moment to survey both Holly and Derek. Like Susan, Holly was blonde but her features were sharper, making her look a little older. Calleigh couldn't help but notice that Derek fitted the 'tall, dark and handsome' label perfectly and she flickered her gaze to Holly again. The two of them looked like a couple and she wondered if the restraining order Holly won against Susan had something to do with Derek.

"Ma'am?" Horatio called.

Calleigh looked over her shoulder and smiled at him before together, they entered the room. Once they were both seated she began.

"My name is CSI Duquesne, this is Lieutenant Caine. We just need to ask you a few questions about Susan Hampshire."

Derek nodded whilst Holly clasped her hands together and looked up at Calleigh, waiting for her to continue.

"You were out with Miss. Hampshire last night weren't you?"

Derek glanced at Holly, almost asking for permission to speak.

"Yeah, we were at the 'Atarazana' all night. Susan left before we did though."

Calleigh raised her eyebrows.

"Mr. Williams…do you remember what time it was when she left?" Horatio asked for her.

Holly emitted a little sigh and moved her hand in front of her face, peering at her nails. Calleigh studied her carefully while Derek answered Horatio's question.

"Must have been in the early hours of this morning, one, two maybe?"

Horatio nodded and glanced at Calleigh who was still watching Ms. Jackson curiously. The other woman had raised her hand to her mouth and was nibbling on one of her fingernails. She looked up when she felt Calleigh's gaze and dropped her hand, forcing an uneasy smile.

"Terrible habit I know," she shrugged.

Calleigh arched an eyebrow; _'or nervous gesture.'_

"Ms. Jackson, would you mind telling us what the restraining order against Miss. Hampshire was about?"

Holly laughed.

"My friendship with Susan was…turbulent," she decided on the word. "That was such a long time ago. She and Derek go way back, they went to high school together. Anyway, we were both in the kitchen one night and I caught sight of Susan out of the window, just staring at us. I was a little creeped out to say the least and called the police. She was booked for trespassing and they asked if I'd like to impose a restraining order so I said yes; I didn't want her to make it a regular thing."

Calleigh looked at Derek and noticed he'd tensed considerably.

"Susan was going through a rough patch at the time Holly, she wasn't dangerous."

"Mr. Williams…you didn't agree with the restraining order?" Horatio asked him.

Holly shot him a glare before fixing her eyes on Derek, her eyes burning into him.

"Look, I kept out of it. It was between Holly and Susan," he offered diplomatically.

Calleigh fought the urge to smile; '_Holly certainly had him wrapped around her finger.'_

"Okay, did either of you walk Susan to her car last night?" she decided to change the topic.

Derek raised his hands to his head as a look of horror seeped in.

"Oh God, no. No I should have done, then maybe," he took a moment to compose himself. "Maybe this wouldn't have happened."

Calleigh nodded. She didn't want to reinforce the man's guilt; she didn't think Susan's death had anything to do with him, not directly anyway. She turned her attention to Holly and eyed her curiously. She couldn't help but feel a little weary of the woman.

"Mr. Williams, would you like to step outside for a moment and get a drink? I understand this is hard for you," she made it sound more like a statement than a question and Derek nodded.

Calleigh gestured to an officer outside the room and watched as Derek went with him to get his composure back. She then turned her focus back to Holly and smiled.

"Is there anyone that can confirm that you were inside the club the entire night Ms. Jackson?" Calleigh jumped straight to the point.

Unconsciously, Holly began to thumb one of her bitten down fingernails as she considered Calleigh's question.

"The bar staff, Derek…" she shrugged.

"And you're absolutely sure that you didn't leave?" Horatio pushed.

Holly snapped her eyes to him and sighed irritably.

"Yes, I am perfectly sure Lieutenant. The only time that I left Derek's side was to go to the ladies. Last time I checked, that wasn't a crime."

Horatio looked over at Calleigh and gestured that they were done here. He stood up and placed his hands on his hips, tilting his head to the side as he did so.

"No Ms. Jackson it's not," he shifted his body to the side. "But murder…murder is."

He held Holly's gaze for a moment before he strolled towards the door and invisible guitars and drums followed him out.

With a polite smile at Holly, Calleigh moved to leave but the other woman stopped her.

"Can Derek and I go now?"

"I'm afraid not Ms. Jackson. You and Mr. Williams were the last people to see Susan alive and are currently our only two suspects. You are free to sit in the waiting area and help yourselves to refreshments though."

Holly opened her mouth to speak but Calleigh exited the room quickly before she had a chance to argue.

_**/EC/**_

Ryan and Cooper were peering at the CCTV footage intently. They'd just witnessed Susan's death, or at least half of it. The camera hadn't managed to capture the entire sequence of events or most importantly, the attacker. They'd watched as Susan got into her Mercedes at around 1AM and the camera had caught something smashing through the left front window. After that, Susan had scrambled out of the passenger door and ran off camera as it began its slow turn to focus on another area. All Ryan and Cooper had been able to see of the attacker was their shadow. Ryan sighed irritably and looked up as Calleigh walked past the room. He got up and poked his head out of the door.

"Hey Calleigh, come take a look at this," he gestured for her to follow him as Cooper hit the rewind.

_**/EC/ A week later, Thursday, 17:47 /EC/**_

Eric laughed at her comment and reached for her hand across the table. They had returned the boat around an hour ago and were now sitting in a small café that overlooked the beach.

"It's not funny Eric," Calleigh's eyes levelled.

He raised his eyebrows but made no attempt to still his playful smile.

"I'm serious! Imagine if it had been Valera on the phone instead of Ryan! I don't want people knowing when you're feeling _happy_." She widened her eyes at the last word, hoping he'd get the innuendo. There was a young family seated close to them and she didn't particularly want to discuss their sex life in front of them.

He laughed again and reached for her other hand.

"I didn't hear you complaining when I -"

She cut him off with a small kick under the table and gestured to the young children on their left. He trapped her leg between his knees and squeezed her hands.

"I'm sorry Cal, I'll try to exercise more restraint in the future," he responded with mock sincerity.

She eyed him carefully and her mouth settled onto a pout.

He wiggled his eyebrows playfully at her and then removed a hand from hers to take a sip of his coffee.

"So you ever think about it?" Eric changed the subject, nodding over at the table on their left.

Calleigh followed the direction of his gaze and watched as one of the toddlers reached across the table and knocked over a pot of milk. She turned her eyes back to Eric and laughed.

"What, kids? Maybe when I find the right guy," she teased. "You?"

Eric shrugged.

"Maybe when I find the right girl," he grinned back.

He watched as she laughed and a strand of hair fell over her face. He reached out and brushed it away, his hand lingering a little longer than necessary.

"Seriously though, do you?"

Calleigh considered his question for a moment and looked down at their hands as Eric clasped their fingers. None of her previous relationships had ever warranted her considering the kid question, or the marriage one for that matter, but Eric was different.

He waited patiently for her answer, knowing that she needed to think about questions like that, needed to build up the courage to answer them. He loved her vulnerable side and he couldn't help but feel a little proud that she allowed him to see it; she didn't show it to just anyone. He released her leg, trying to let her know that there wasn't any pressure, and took another sip of his coffee.

She looked back up at him as he set his mug down and reached for her own.

"Yeah, I do," she murmured softly, before taking a sip.

Eric smiled and leant back into his chair. He didn't want to push her further; her answer was enough for him.

"Me too," he held her gaze as each considered what the other had said.

She flashed him of _those_ smiles and broke eye contact to look at the ocean as a pink glow began to form over it.

"Hey look," she gestured.

Eric followed her gaze and smiled as the glow deepened and shades of orange emerged. He reached for his wallet and threw a couple of notes down on the table before he stood up and held out his hand.

"Come on, let's go take a closer look."

He was treated to another one of _those_ smiles as she took his hand and allowed him to pull her up. _'She really did love the sunset.'_

* * *

This end moment does have a purpose I promise! You're just going to have to wait to see what it is though :D

Tomorrow might be a little tricky for me to update as I've yet to write the next chapter. (From this point, I've only written the last three...or at least what I think will be the last three anyway and there is quite a lot that I need to write to get to them.)

As always, reviews are very much appreciated :)


	5. Chapter 5

I managed to squeeze some time in and write this chapter.

From the reviews, I see some of you think you've guessed what Eric's plan is...we'll just have to wait and see if you're right, won't we? :D

Anyway, here you go. Chapter Five, enjoy! x

* * *

**Chapter Five**

* * *

_**/EC/ A week earlier, The Hampshire Case, 14:03 /EC/**_

Calleigh watched the video footage that Cooper and Ryan had been observing. She sighed when she realised that the only useful thing it told them was that Susan had been in the car when the window was smashed and that was how she'd got the cuts on her face.

"And there was only one camera on this floor of the parking lot?" she asked, hoping that there was another.

"Yeah, one camera per floor," Ryan shrugged.

Calleigh ran her fingers through her hair and stared back at the screen for a moment, trying to see if there was anything that they'd missed. She took a look at the bottom of it and committed the time of the attack to memory, before she turned back to Ryan.

"What time did Susan arrive?"

Ryan glanced down at his notes before he replied.

"At around quarter to ten."

"What about Holly and Derek?"

"We didn't see them. If they came by car, they didn't park here," Cooper answered.

"Okay," Calleigh considered this for a moment. "Could you see if 'Atarazana' has any CCTV? They might be able to help us."

Ryan took out his cell.

"Sure, Natalia's back at the crime scene looking for the murder weapon, I'll ask her to stop by and pick it up."

"Thank you Ryan." She smiled at him before she added, "I'll be in Ballistics if you need me."

Ryan nodded his response and concentrated on the dialing tone, waiting for Natalia to answer as Calleigh left the room.

_**/EC/**_

Valera was watching Eric through the glass. She'd just finished running some DNA through CODIS for another case and was taking a short break. _'Where have you hidden it this time?'_ Eric was getting better and better at hiding his cubano from her and it was starting to become a chore to look. She reached for a cupboard to the right of the break room and began to pull jars out of it in the hope that the one jar she was looking for was behind them. Valera emitted a triumphant sigh when she found it and busied herself with the coffee maker. When she was done, she turned her eyes back to the Trace lab and studied Eric carefully; he was clearly struggling with something. Valera hesitated for a moment, before she headed for the door and moved through it.

_**/EC/**_

Eric was deep in thought. He'd just run the small fragment through the maspec. and was waiting for the results. Whilst he waited, his thoughts had returned to his predicament. He knew he wanted to find the perfect one but he was still unsure where to look and he rubbed his eyes when he realised that he needed some help. He looked up when the door opened and a figure stepped through it.

She smiled at him and settled herself down on a stool in front of him, a mug clasped in her hands.

"Is something up Eric?" she raised her eyebrows curiously.

Eric chuckled; Valera was quite possibly the nosiest person he'd ever come across. Ignoring her question, he eyed the mug in her hands and frowned.

"Is that my cubano?"

Valera moved it out of his line of sight immediately and settled it on the table next to her behind an evidence box.

"No," she smiled innocently.

"Uh huh," he eyed her suspiciously.

"So, you haven't answered my question," she prompted.

Eric sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"What makes you think that something is up?" he feigned indifference.

Valera narrowed her eyes and studied him for a moment.

"Eric, the walls are made of glass. I see everything and I know that something is bugging you."

He stayed silent.

"Maybe I can help?" she pushed.

He averted his eyes and glanced over at the printer, hoping that it was about to save him by rolling off a results sheet.

"Eric!" Valera whined. "Use me!"

He sighed and looked back at her. Whilst Valera wasn't perhaps the best person to ask considering her gossiping reputation, he couldn't deny the fact that he really did need some help. It was also an added plus that she was a female and was therefore more likely to be better equipped to deal with situations like this and so with a deep breath, he told her his predicament, hoping that he wasn't going to live to regret it…

_**/EC/**_

Natalia glanced around her surroundings. She was standing in the middle of 'Atarazana Nightclub' and the place had a real Latin feel to it. It wasn't really her scene, but she could imagine that it could be quite a fun place to come to. She looked up when the owner appeared and handed her the security tape.

"Thank you," Natalia smiled at him. "Could I talk to one of your bouncers? I'm trying to find out if anyone can confirm when these two people left last night," she handed him two photographs of Holly Jackson and Derek Williams.

He glanced down at them and raised his eyes back to hers.

"Sure, but we get a lot of people in here so I can't promise anything. You're probably better off just looking at the video footage but…" he gestured to one of the security guys and waited for him to approach. He then handed the photographs to him.

"Jack, did you see these two last night?"

The man studied the photos for a minute and nodded.

"Yeah, they were here with that woman that the other officer asked about."

Natalia nodded, knowing he was referring to Tripp.

"Do you recall what time they left?" she pushed.

Jack thought about this for a moment as he tried to remember.

"Uh, no but this one," he gestured to the face on the right. "This one left for a little while and then came back. Both of them left together quite soon after that."

"Okay, thank you," Natalia smiled at both the bouncer and the owner. "You've both been very helpful."

The two men nodded their goodbyes and watched as she exited the nightclub, taking out her cell as she did so.

_**/EC/**_

Ryan was still in the Tech lab with Cooper. They were trying to see if they could manipulate the camera angle to get a better look of the attack. He rubbed his eyes when he realised that they weren't getting anywhere and rested his arms on the table. At that moment, his phone buzzed and he flipped it open.

"Wolfe?"

"Hey you, I got CCTV."

Ryan broke into a grin at Natalia's voice.

"You on your way back?"

"Yeah, I should be there shortly. I also spoke to the bouncer; apparently Ms. Jackson left the club for a little while. She then came back and got Mr. Williams."

Ryan raised his eyebrows; _'that's interesting...'_

"Alright thanks, I'll page Calleigh."

"Okay, see you soon."

"I'll be waiting," he shot back.

He heard her laugh as she hung up and turned back to Cooper.

"What?" he asked, noticing the grimace on the other man's face.

"I'll be waiting," Cooper mimicked him and rolled his eyes.

Ryan shot him a glare and fiddled with his pager, sending a message to Calleigh about what Natalia had found out.

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh was in the process of filling out some paperwork when her pager came alive. She reached for it and read the message from Ryan carefully and then with a smile, unclipped her phone from her waist and dialled a number.

"Caine?"

"Hey handsome. Turns out Ms. Jackson lied to us; she wasn't in the club the entire night. I don't think we should question her until we know for sure when she left though. Natalia's bringing the clubs CCTV back to the lab so we can get a time."

"Okay…" Horatio paused and she could almost feel him shift his body. "Keep me posted."

She waited for the click to signal that he'd hung up and smiled; _'It's a good thing she liked that song.'_

_**/EC/**_

As usual, she found Eric in the Trace lab. He was studying a piece of paper, a frown etched upon his face.

"You got the results from that fragment Ryan found?" Calleigh asked him, eyeing the paper in his hands.

He looked up and smiled.

"Well, it's made from acrylic - "

"Plastic?" she interrupted him.

Eric nodded.

"But I haven't got a clue what it's snapped off from."

Calleigh moved closer and came to stand next to him, peering over his shoulder at the maspec. results. While she looked, Eric's gaze connected with Valera who was watching them closely, a knowing grin playing with her mouth. He shot her a warning look and moved his body to block her face from view; he didn't want Calleigh to get anymore suspicious than she already was.

"Any ideas?" he asked.

Calleigh looked up and shook her head.

"No," she sighed.

She reached for the photograph of it and bit her lip as she considered what it could be. The fragment was still undecipherable, even though Cooper had blown up the photo. She looked back at Eric and shrugged.

"Guess we'll just have to keep a look out for something made out of plastic."

Eric nodded and settled himself down on a stool.

"Yeah, any news on the murder weapon yet?"

Calleigh sat herself next to him and shook her head once more. She watched as Eric moved his stool so that he was in front of her and looked at him questioningly.

Eric smiled and brushed a piece of hair off her face. He knew Valera was still watching and his little manoeuvre had made sure that Calleigh's back was now facing their beloved DNA specialist. He took her hands in his before he spoke again.

"I'm going to head back to the crime scene and have another look for it."

She opened her mouth to speak but he held his finger up to her lips.

"Yes I know Natalia's already looked but I'm going to check the trail from the parking lot to the nightclub." He removed his finger, indicating that she was allowed to speak.

She smiled at him and nodded.

"Okay, let me know if you find something?"

"Always," he grinned back at her, before he placed a kiss on her forehead and walked them out of the Trace lab, shooting daggers behind him as he did so.

_**/EC/**_

Ryan smiled at her through the glass; Natalia had just stepped out of the elevator and was making her way towards the Tech lab.

Noticing the other man's distraction, Cooper looked over to where Ryan was staring and rolled his eyes; _'oh please.'_

"Hey," Ryan's smile grew as she entered the room.

"Hey," Natalia mirrored his smile.

Cooper watched as they held each others gaze and rolled his eyes once more.

"Ahem," he feigned a cough.

It had the desired effect as Natalia tore her eyes away from Ryan and handed him the security tape.

"Alright, let's see what this baby tells us," he said as he popped it into the machine and the three of them leaned in to get a better look.

Cooper hit 'fast-forward' until they caught sight of Susan. They watched as she approached the two people that were waiting for her and then together they disappeared into the club.

"So Susan met Derek and Holly at around ten," Ryan observed as he wrote the time down.

They continued to watch as Cooper hit the 'fast-forward' again. After a little while, Susan emerged from the club and Ryan couldn't help but notice that she looked quite upset. He glanced at the bottom of the screen and noted the time; 01:02.

"What time did the attack take place?" Natalia asked.

Ryan reached for the notes that he'd taken from the parking lot's CCTV.

"Uh, around 01:18, which means her attacker must have followed her."

Natalia nodded and turned her attention back to the screen. A few minutes later, Holly emerged from the club and headed in the same direction that Susan had gone.

"Well that's some damning evidence," she grinned up at Ryan.

He rubbed his eyes and sighed.

"Yeah, but all it proves was that she followed Susan. We don't have a single shot of her in the parking lot which means we can't prove that she killed her."

Natalia considered this for a moment before she spoke again.

"It should be enough for Calleigh to get a DNA sample and some fingerprints though."

Ryan smiled and winked at her.

"Guess I'll call Calleigh then."

She laughed and got up to leave.

"Okay, I'll see you later."

"Not too much later I hope," he called after her as she left.

He didn't even need to look at Cooper to know what face he was pulling.

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh was in the break room when her cell went. She listened patiently as Ryan brought her up to speed on their latest discovery and smiled as she ended the call and made another.

"Caine?"

"Hey handsome, think it's time for that chat with Ms. Jackson. I'm just about to head over to interrogation now."

"Calleigh…I'm on my way."

She smiled again and with a final sip of her cubano and a final imaginary guitar strum, she left the room.

* * *

I'll try to post tomorrow but I've got such a lot going on right now.

But then again, you guys over in America have a brand new episode tonight so I don't feel too guilty ;) Luckily for me, some bright spark invented youtube.

Oh, just in case you were wondering, maspec. is short for maspectrometer.

Anyway, hope you liked it. Reviews very much appreciated.


	6. Chapter 6

I woke up ridiculously early this morning and couldn't get back to sleep so I thought that I would use the time to write this chapter, and the next one. I can't quite decide if I want to post them both together so I'll give you this one first and then when I get home later I'll consider posting Chapter Seven.

Anyway for now, here is Chapter Six.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**Chapter Six**

* * *

Horatio was in the middle of a confrontation when Calleigh arrived. She approached carefully and came to stand next to him.

"Lieutenant Caine, either charge my clients with something or let them go. You have no right to keep them here."

Calleigh settled her gaze on the man that had spoken and took in his appearance; expensive suit, briefcase and a preppy hair cut. _'Oh yeah, he was a lawyer.'_

"Mr…" she waited for him to finish her sentence.

"Tanner, and you are?" he eyed her curiously.

Calleigh smiled at him.

"Mr. Tanner, I'm CSI Duquesne. We just need to ask Ms. Jackson some questions and then perhaps she and Mr. Williams can leave."

He held her gaze for a moment before he replied.

"What questions would those be exactly?"

"Shall we step inside?" she motioned to the empty interrogation room, flashing him a smile in an attempt to dispel any animosity.

He eyed her carefully before he nodded for Holly to follow him into the room.

Calleigh glanced at Horatio and raised her eyebrows.

"Well this is going to be fun."

"Calleigh...isn't it always," he gave a half smile back and held the door open for her.

Calleigh stepped through it and waited until everyone was seated before she began.

"Ms. Jackson you told us that you stayed inside the club from the moment you arrived until the moment you left. Is that correct?"

"Yes, why?" she fiddled with her fingers.

"Ms. Jackson you lied to us. We have CCTV footage of you leaving the club a few minutes after Susan did. You later came back and left with Mr. Williams."

Holly tensed and glanced over at her lawyer. He considered what the best possible course of action would be and nodded for her to tell the truth. Lieutenant Caine's team had a glowing reputation and he knew that his client wouldn't be here if they didn't have something.

"I did leave for a few minutes, yes," she finally answered.

"Why?" Horatio prompted.

"Susan and I got into a fight. It was over that restraining order I imposed on her a while ago. Derek had tried to get us to make up and that was what last night was about but she stared to hit on him. She'd always been in love with him and understandably I got a bit angry."

"Angry enough to kill her?" Calleigh raised her eyebrows.

"Don't answer that. CSI Duquesne you are out of line," Tanner defended his client.

Calleigh flashed him a tight smile and nodded.

"What did you do after you left the club Ms. Jackson?" she tried a different tact.

Holly looked over at her lawyer again for permission to speak. She nervously thumbed over one of her newly painted fingernails before she answered.

"I caught up with Susan and tried to apologise but she wouldn't listen and she stormed off. Afterwards, I came back to the club to get Derek so that we could go home."

"Well then you won't mind if I collect a DNA sample and get your fingerprints then," Calleigh smiled at her.

"CSI Duquesne – "

"Mr. Tanner…" Horatio interrupted him. "Mr. Tanner we have video footage of your client leaving the club shortly before Miss. Hampshire's murder and her re-entering a little while after it. She also lied to us. I suggest that you allow your client to cooperate."

"Lieutenant Caine," he met Horatio's eyes smugly. "I suggest you get a warrant."

Calleigh resisted the urge to roll her eyes and instead ran a hand through her hair. She glanced over at Horatio and shrugged.

"We done here?" the lawyer asked.

Horatio stood up and tilted his head to the side.

"For now," he said as he headed out of the door, closely followed by Calleigh.

_**/EC/**_

The two of them walked in silence until they reached Horatio's office and then with a hand on the door, he turned to face her.

"I'll see what Frank can do about that warrant."

Calleigh nodded and sighed; lawyers had a habit of being infuriating.

"Okay, I'll be in Trace if you need me. I'm going to see if there is anything we've missed." She smiled her goodbye and continued onto the Trace lab.

_**/EC/**_

She was surprised to find Eric back already. He was running something through the maspectrometer and waiting patiently for the results.

"Hey," she slid up next to him and shot him a puzzled look. "Did you find anything?"

"Well, I didn't find a murder weapon but I did find this. I called Natalia and asked her to take over the search while I brought it back to the lab."

She watched as he moved over to the examination table and gestured for her to follow. She did as he asked and studied the small, clear tube that contained the substance he'd just run through the maspec.

"Where did you find this?" she raised her eyes back to his.

"I did a quick re-check around the parking lot, found it stuck in a crack on the floor. The top was loose and some of it had leaked out."

Calleigh eyed him curiously and raised her eyebrows.

"You know, Natalia found something similar. It turned out to be glue."

He held her gaze and wiggled his eyebrows playfully before the two of them turned to the printer as it kicked into life and rolled off a results page. Eric reached for it and studied it for a moment.

"It's not similar; it's exactly the same substance."

He handed her the piece of paper and waited for her to confirm what he'd just discovered. She placed the paper down on the table and frowned.

"So we have adhesive and acrylic." Calleigh sighed and sat herself down on a stool, considering what their possible meaning could be.

Eric sat down next to her and ran a hand through her hair.

"I take it interrogation didn't go so well?"

She shook her head and leaned against him as he slipped his arm around her shoulder.

"No, our two suspects have taken it upon themselves to get a lawyer," she muttered bitterly.

He laughed and pulled her closer to him.

"How long do you think a warrant's going to take?"

"Depends on the judge," she shrugged.

Calleigh watched as Eric reached for her hand and clasped his fingers through hers. She cocked her head to the side as she slowly began to realise something...

"_What did you do after you left the club Ms. Jackson?"_

_Holly looked over at her lawyer again for permission to speak. She nervously thumbed over one of her __**newly painted fingernails**__ before she answered._

Calleigh's eyes snapped up to Eric's as she suddenly understood. He looked back at her questioningly, knowing that the small sparkle she had meant that she'd just broken the case.

"She had fingernails!"

Eric frowned and looked back at her blankly.

"When I questioned Holly the first time, she had chewed down nails but when I interviewed her the second time, she had immaculate ones!" she rushed, her accent getting a little fiercer.

"Uh, Cal? I don't think fingernails grow that fast."

"They don't."

Eric frowned again and watched as she stood up and reached for the photograph of the acrylic fragment that Ryan had found.

"Fake nails," she beamed at him as she held it up. "You stick them on with adhesive. Ms. Jackson had her handbag with her when she left the club and the glue must have flown out in the struggle. I kept her waiting long enough between interrogations for her to reapply her fingernails."

Eric smiled, finally understanding what she was getting at.

"You know, Susan had scratch marks on her arm. Maybe Holly's nail came loose in the struggle."

Calleigh flashed him one of _those_ smiles and reached for the evidence bag that contained what they now knew to be an acrylic, fake fingernail.

"Well if we're right, we may be able to pull both Susan and Holly's DNA from this."

Eric laughed; he loved it when she got excited like this. He suddenly tensed when he realised that she was about to enter the DNA lab, Valera's domain; _'Oh God.'_ He reached for Calleigh's arms and pulled her back as she attempted to leave.

"How about I take this to Valera while you go and let Horatio know what we've just found out?"

She eyed him carefully.

"But we haven't actually found out anything, just theorised. There's no point in bothering Horatio until we're sure."

Eric pulled her closer, desperately trying to think of a way to prevent her from coming into contact with Valera.

"Eric?" Calleigh frowned, a little confused as to what was going on.

He sighed when he realised that he was just going to have to let her go; there was nothing that he could tell her without giving away what he was planning. Gently, he planted a kiss on her forehead and released her.

"Go catch our killer. I'll wait here."

Calleigh nodded and held his gaze for a moment, still slightly confused. He somehow managed to flash her a reassuring smile and wiggled his eyebrows playfully.

"Okay," she gave him a final lingering look. "I'll see you later."

As soon as she was gone, Eric turned round to face the DNA lab, ensuring he had a clear view of it. Valera was filling out some sort of form and he tried to catch her attention, failing miserably. His heart was beating overtime and panic overtook him; _'of all the people he could possibly have told, why the hell had he told Valera?'_

_**/EC/**_

Valera looked up when Calleigh entered the room. The blonde flashed her a smile and settled herself down on a stool, her back facing the Trace lab.

"I've got a fake fingernail. Can you see if you can pull any DNA from it?"

Valera nodded and glanced behind Calleigh for a moment; her eyes connected with Eric who was shooting her a warning look.

Noticing Valera's distraction, Calleigh began to turn her head around and Eric widened his eyes at Valera. She quickly snapped to attention and reached for the evidence bag in Calleigh's hand, forcing Calleigh to look back at her.

"I'll see what I can do," Valera forced a smile.

It was killing her not being able to tell Calleigh Eric's secret; _'and boy, was it a secret.'_ She had to hold in a squeal of delight at her knowledge and quickly averted her eyes from Calleigh's, engrossing herself in her work.

Calleigh eyed her curiously. For once, Valera wasn't talking very much or even looking at her. In fact, everytime she tried to make eye contact Valera looked away; _'something was up.'_

"Maxine?" Calleigh began, enhancing her accent so her voice was a little sweeter.

Valera tensed, knowing that she was about to be interrogated. It wasn't often that Calleigh used her first name but whenever she did, it was when she wanted something that Valera usually didn't want to help her with.

"Yeah?" she eventually replied, making sure that she stayed focused on current task.

"Is everything okay?" Calleigh pushed.

Valera bit her lip, struggling to hold it in. She'd made a promise to Eric that she wouldn't say anything and it was taking every ounce of her to keep it. She could still feel Eric's gaze penetrating her and she almost squirmed in her discomfort.

"Everything's fine," she managed.

Calleigh continued to watch her, a smile tugging at her mouth when she realised their role reversal; usually it was Valera doing the grilling and herself doing the adverting. Before she could push her question further however, the printer emitted a 'beep' and began to roll off a results sheet. Calleigh held in a sigh; normally the interruptions provided by all the various technology were convenient, but not so much now.

Valera seized at the opportunity to change the subject and snatched up the paper almost as soon as the last drop of ink had made contact with it.

Calleigh arched an eyebrow and waited for the results, still curious as to what was going on with the DNA specialist.

"I've got two blood samples. Both XX."

Calleigh's eyes lightened, excitement creeping in.

"Can you run them through CODIS?"

Valera nodded and fought the urge to grimace; she knew that there would be a good couple of minutes before CODIS came up with anything. She placed the first sample in the sensor and pretended to busy herself with some papers, hoping that Calleigh would let the previous conversation drop.

"Maxine?" a southern voice drawled.

Valera bit her lip; _'no such luck.' _Eventually, she managed a nod.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Calleigh pressed.

Valera sighed and looked down at the floor for a moment. She needed to think of a plausible excuse and fast.

"I need a man," she heard herself blurt out. _'What?'_

Calleigh fought the urge to laugh and eyed her carefully. Of all the possible things that Valera could have said, that wasn't one of them. She'd always struck her as the 'drifter' type, the type that didn't commit and was happy to go where the moment took her.

"Uh, well have you got anyone in mind?" she asked, still a little shocked.

Valera tensed, not quite sure why out of all possible excuses, she had chosen to use that one. She opened her mouth to back out of it but then caught Eric's warning look once more and sighed. She moved her eyes to Cooper who was in the Tech lab with Ryan and took it upon herself to drag him into the equation.

"Cooper," she shrugged casually, trying to feign sincerity.

In reality, she had no intention of ever going there with Cooper. They were simply friends who shared a common interest in having a little fun at the CSI's expense. Besides, he really wasn't her type and the lab was already in danger of turning into a serious love fest. The only reason she'd picked Cooper was because Ryan had Natalia and Horatio well, Horatio was Horatio.

Calleigh's mouth hung open; _'Cooper?'_ Realising her manners, she closed her mouth and forced a smile. She stifled a nervous chuckle as she struggled to think of anything to say.

Both of them released a sigh of relief when CODIS came to the rescue.

"This sample matches Susan's DNA," Valera confirmed.

"So whoever this nail belongs to definitely scratched her," Calleigh deduced. "Can you run the second sample against the one we haven't been able to identify yet?"

"Sure," Valera forced, knowing that once again she was going to have to endure a few more minutes in Calleigh's presence. She clenched her hands as she struggled to not come clean. Thankfully, Calleigh didn't ask her anything else. In fact, she didn't speak at all, still not quite sure what to say about Valera's sudden and unexpected declaration.

Eventually, the silence was broken by CODIS.

"It's a match," Valera confirmed. "We just need to find out who this fingernail belonged to."

Calleigh flashed her a genuine smile and stood up.

"Thank you Maxine, I think I have a pretty good idea," she raised her eyebrows knowingly as she left the room, oblivious to the silent communication going on between Eric and Valera through the glass.

* * *

All will be revealed shortly I promise! In the next chapter, in fact :D

Reviews very much appreciated.


	7. Chapter 7

Alright I'm too excited about this chapter to not post it so I'm going to ignore what little restraint I have and just do it.

Second update for today.

**Edit: If it's popped up to say I've updated this all I have done is corrected a spelling and swapped an "I" for a "he"**

**Edit 2: You're going to need to have read the last chapter of Vapour for the end of this to make sense.**

Enjoy! x

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

* * *

Calleigh settled herself down in her Ballistics lab and then reached for her cell. She leant back into her chair as she patiently waited for him to pick up.

"Tripp?"

"Hey Frank, any luck with that warrant yet?"

"No, Mr. Tanner has friends in high places, he's pulling out all the stall tactics."

Calleigh smiled into her phone and rolled her eyes.

"Well maybe I can help…"

Tripp listened as Calleigh informed him about the newly identified fake fingernail and its connection between both Susan and Holly.

"Alright, I'll let the judge know. Even Tanner can't worm his way out of this one, we should have grounds for an immediate warrant."

"Thank you Frank. Can you let Ryan know when you get it and ask him to collect Holly's prints and DNA?."

"Yeah, will do."

Calleigh waited for the click to signal that he'd hung up and was just about to re-clip her phone to her waist when it started to buzz. Curious, she flipped it open and answered the call.

"Duquesne?"

"Calleigh!" a voice squealed.

"Sarah?"

"Guess what, I'm in Miami on business and I've got a free evening. How 'bout a catch up?"

Calleigh flashed a smile and considered this for a moment. Sarah was one of her old high school friends from Louisiana and she hadn't seen her for ages. She knew Eric wouldn't mind, they didn't have to do everything together.

"Sure. Where and when?"

_**/EC/**_

Eric was pacing outside the Ballistics lab. He was trying to think of a way to explain why he wouldn't be travelling home with her after work; he and Valera were going shopping but obviously he couldn't tell Calleigh that. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed, wondering if all this was really worth it. He looked through the glass and watched as Calleigh flashed a smile into her phone that lit up the room and he melted; _'of course it was worth it.'_

He entered the lab just as Calleigh hung up and silently sat himself next to her.

"Anyone I know?" he asked, a little curious.

She flashed him one of _those_ smiles and re-clipped her phone to her waist.

"That was an old friend from high school. I've made plans to go out with her straight from work, you weren't planning on cooking dinner or anything were you?"

Eric could have jumped for joy; she had just inadvertently answered his prayers.

"No, that's fine. You go have fun," he grinned, perhaps a little more enthusiastically than was really necessary.

"Okay…" she eyed him carefully. "Anyway, I won't be back too late."

He reached up and ran a hand through her hair.

"Take as long as you want."

Calleigh bit her lip, a little confused. Whilst she appreciated Eric's understanding that she wanted a girls night, she couldn't help but feel that he had ulterior motives.

Eric held her gaze, knowing that she was suspicious and attempted to reassure her. He watched as she opened her mouth to speak and silenced her with his immediately; deciding the best action to take would be to leave the room without saying anything more.

"Eric?" Calleigh mumbled into their kiss.

She watched as he pulled away and flashed her a playful grin, before he disappeared from view and left her to wallow in her confusion.

_**/EC/**_

Natalia sighed. She still hadn't been able to find the murder weapon which was a little odd; a tire iron wasn't an easy thing to hide. She looked back along the street, mentally ticking which potential hiding places she'd checked. Her eyes suddenly settled on a trashcan in front of a restaurant and she grimaced; _'just her luck.'_

With an effort, she dragged herself over to it and lifted up the lid, stumbling backwards as the smell hit her. Once she'd finally got a hold over her nose, she moved forwards and gingerly began to probe through the trash. After a good ten minutes, a voice interrupted her.

"What are you doing?"

Natalia looked up and met the eyes of an older man who was watching her curiously. She forced a smile and took a moment to step backwards from the trashcan, breathing in the fresh air.

"Hi, I'm CSI Boa Vista, I'm just searching for something that may help a murder investigation that I'm currently working on."

The man's eyes lit up, suddenly interested.

"Well, you're not going to find it in there," he gestured to the trashcan. "It was emptied three hours ago."

Natalia widened her eyes.

"But it's nearly full!"

"And I run a restaurant, we get through a lot of waste," the man shrugged.

Natalia ripped her gloves off in her frustration and ran a hand through her hair.

"Well did you happen to see anything before the trash got taken out? Anything unusual?" she tried desperately.

The restaurant owner considered this for a moment before he shrugged again.

"I did see a tire iron, but I'm not quite sure how it got there."

Natalia froze; _'Oh God.'_ She sighed her frustration and looked away, trying to compose herself; their murder weapon was currently making its way to the landfill site a few miles outside of the city. Even if she managed to find it, it was now useless. The trace and possible DNA was contaminated and she knew it would be unlikely to stand up in court. She eventually allowed herself to look back at the man and gave him a polite smile before she took out her cell and dialled a number.

_**/EC/**_

Eric was taking a moment to catch up on some paperwork when his phone buzzed. He stretched an arm in front of him, trying to fight away the dull ache in his wrist from all the writing and then reached for his cell.

"Delko?"

"Eric, it's Natalia. We've got a problem."

He rubbed his eyes as she informed him of the latest snag. The future of the case now rested on the fake fingernail; it was currently all they had to tie Holly to the crime scene. A flash of blonde momentarily captured Eric's attention as Calleigh walked past the Trace lab on her way to interrogation and he smiled when he realised the warrant had come through. He turned his attention back to his phone and reassured Natalia that as long as Holly's prints and DNA matched the other evidence that they had collected, not having the murder weapon wouldn't be a problem.

"Okay, I'll head back to the lab," he heard her reply.

"Yeah, see you later."

He snapped his cell shut and reached for his paperwork once more, grimacing when he realised how much he had to get through.

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh met Ryan in the hallway, just outside of interrogation. She flashed him a smile and eyed the two evidence bags in his hands.

"You got Holly's DNA and prints?" she asked, not really needing to.

"Yeah, much to the annoyance of the lawyer," he grinned back at her and gestured to the right where Mr. Tanner was angrily talking on his phone, shooting the odd glare at both Calleigh and Ryan in the process.

She allowed herself to laugh and turned back to Ryan.

"Could you do me a favour and take the DNA to Valera? I'll run the prints against the ones Eric found on the glass." She still wasn't quite sure what to say to Valera about their earlier conversation and decided it would be best if she avoided the DNA lab altogether, at least until she was sure that she wouldn't erupt into hysterical laughter at Valera's expense; _'because Cooper?'_ It was just too surreal. Not that she didn't have anything against him, but just because she couldn't see the potential for a relationship there.

"Sure, I'll meet you in Trace when I'm done," she heard Ryan reply as he handed her the prints.

Calleigh flashed him another smile and together they set off for their various destinations. Calleigh caught Cooper's eye through the glass on their way and it took every ounce of her not to laugh; _'Cooper? Really?'_

_**/EC/**_

Eric looked up when she entered the room and watched as she walked over to the computer and fiddled with some fingerprints. He hesitated for a moment, not sure whether to stay in the room or not considering the way he'd run out on her earlier; he didn't want to give her the opportunity to question him further, but her voice made his decision for him.

"What?"

He smiled when his eyes met hers; she'd caught him staring. With a sigh, he stood up and closed the distance between them, pulling her in close.

"You're just so beautiful that it's hard not to look."

She arched an eyebrow at him but couldn't stop the smile that tugged at her mouth. She held his gaze as he grinned playfully at her and then looked back at the screen, still wrapped in Eric's embrace.

"Are those Holly's prints?" he asked.

She kept her eyes on the computer and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm running them against the ones that you got from the glass."

Eric held in a sigh of relief when he realised that her mind was currently focused on the case and not his earlier odd behaviour. He silently praised 'Professional Calleigh' and kissed her temple as he drew her in tighter. He so badly wanted to ask her but he knew that he couldn't, not here, not now. He felt her relax into him as she shifted herself in his arms and through the glass, he could see Ryan and Valera were laughing about something. Eric felt his heart begin to beat faster; _'had she just told him?'_

Before he had a chance to ponder the thought, the computer emitted a 'beep' and Calleigh moved against his arms to get a better look. She turned back to face him and flashed him one of _those _smiles.

"It's a match. Holly must have cut herself on the glass during the struggle."

"Well I guess that mean's we can definitely prove she was in the parking lot at the time of the murder." Despite his increasing paranoia, Eric couldn't help but smile back at her. He slowly bent down and planted a gentle kiss on her mouth and he was about to deepen it, when a voice interrupted them.

"Can't you two get a room?" Ryan teased.

Eric groaned and Calleigh wriggled away from his grasp.

"You really know how to pick your moments don't you Wolfe?" Eric growled, studying him closely in an attempt to work out whether Valera had told him or not. His heart slowed a little when he decided that she hadn't.

Calleigh shot Eric a warning look and forced a smile at Ryan, her professional side scolding herself for allowing their colleague to witness that. She raised her eyebrows at him questioningly, waiting for him to tell her his findings.

"We've got Holly's DNA on both the glass and the fingernail," he grinned back, glancing smugly at Eric in the process. It wasn't often he embarrassed the other man and he was going to savour the opportunity.

"Guess things aren't looking so good for Ms. Jackson now," Calleigh's voice made him turn his eyes back to her.

Ryan nodded and glanced through the glass when he caught sight of Natalia heading for the break room.

Calleigh followed his gaze and smiled.

"It's okay, I'll take it from here," she told him, her eyes sparkling knowingly.

Calleigh watched as Ryan smiled back at her and left the room, heading for Natalia. She reached for Eric's hand and gave it a squeeze; sometimes she wished that she could just let her own inhibitions go and be more public about her relationship with Eric but another part of her liked that what they had was private; it was what made their bond so special. _'Besides,'_ she thought with a smile. _'It's also fun to keep Valera guessing.'_

_**/EC/**_

Valera studied Calleigh through the glass and sighed; keeping this a secret was going to be torture. She was a gossip and subtlety or secrecy had never been her thing. She glanced to the side, briefly looking at Dan and sighed again. For an entire week she was going to have to act like she wanted him. _'Oh, Eric owed her big for this...'_

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh called Horatio as she made her way to interrogation and brought him up to speed on their discovery. He met her outside and together they entered the room. She was quiet for a moment and simply stared at Holly's immaculately painted fingernails. The other woman eyed her curiously and began to feel a little irritated.

"What?" she snapped.

Calleigh raised her eyes to Holly and smiled.

"I see you've fixed your nails."

"Well I had to do something while you kept me waiting." Holly glanced down at her hands and frowned, a little confused as the what the relevance was but before she could ask, her lawyer beat her to it.

"CSI Duquesne if you have a point I suggest you make it."

"Of course," she flashed him a smile and pushed four documents across the table. "Ms. Jackson we know you killed Susan. You followed her from the club to her car and smashed her front window with her own tire iron. She then tried to run but you struggled with her. You cut yourself on the glass and scratched her, breaking one of your acrylic nails in the process. We found Susan's DNA under it as well as your own and matched your fingerprints to the ones we found on the glass. Eventually, you hit her over the head with that same tire iron that you smashed her window with and killed her," she paused to look at the lawyer and smiled sweetly. "Do I need to continue or have you got the point yet?"

Tanner considered this for a moment and looked down at the documents which confirmed everything Calleigh had just said. He sighed as he struggled to find a loophole and smiled when he thought he'd found one.

"How would my client have removed the tire iron from Miss. Hampshire's trunk? It would have taken some time."

"Which Susan gave her; she changed her shoes," Horatio answered.

"Excuse me?"

"She had driving shoes."

Tanner frowned and stared at Horatio blankly.

"Come on, you can't possibly have expected her to drive in stiletto heels? As for the trunk, it's a simple case of central locking. It pops when Susan unlocks her car and re-locks once the ignition is turned," Calleigh filled in the gaps and glanced at Holly. "Ms. Jackson, now would be a good time to speak."

Holly raised her eyes and Calleigh watched as anger seeped in. The woman rubbed the back of her neck and Calleigh caught sight of a small cut halfway up her arm as her sleeve rose up a little. With a sigh, Holly brought her hand back down and clenched her fist tightly, breaking one of her fake nails under the pressure and then she erupted.

"I followed her to the parking lot, saw her start to swap her shoes and I saw red. Susan was trying to take Derek away from me! She wouldn't let him go, wouldn't accept that he was with me! It was never going to end so I ended it. How would you like it if another woman tried to steal away your boyfriend?"

Calleigh raised her eyebrows and shook her head; it never ceased to amaze her how ridiculous murderer's excuses could be.

"And you never thought to trust Derek?" she made it sound more like a statement than a question and Holly opened her mouth and closed it as she pondered what Calleigh had just said.

Horatio gestured to Tripp who was just outside the room and waited for him to enter.

"Book her Frank."

Calleigh watched as he led Holly away and smiled as the woman began to thumb her now exposed, bitten-down real fingernail.

"Terrible habit," she called as Holly left the room.

Horatio smiled at Calleigh and followed Holly and Tripp out, leaving her to consider Holly's question. She then scolded herself for even allowing herself to think about it. She couldn't guarantee that she wouldn't get jealous if other women tried to flirt with Eric, which they inevitably would, but she could rest assured that she wouldn't flip out like Holly had because Calleigh trusted Eric. She trusted him with every fiber of her being and knew that he would never cheat on her or hurt her because he loved her and she loved him. With a satisfied smile, she rose and headed for the locker room to say goodbye to him before she left to meet Sarah, not realising that Eric had plans of his own...

_**/EC/ Later that night, 22:12 /EC/**_

Eric stared at the box in his hand. His shopping experience with Valera had been surprisingly painless and she'd actually been a big help. Eric had chosen it though; he'd known it was the one as soon as he'd seen it and he hadn't been able to put it down since he got home. With a smile, he flipped the box open and gazed down at the diamond engagement ring that sat snugly in the cushioning; _'it was perfect.'_ He ran a hand through his hair when he realised he was going to have to wait for a while until he could give it to her. Horatio hadn't been able to give them time off until next week and as Eric had decided that he wanted it to be absolutely perfect, he'd agreed on the following Thursday. He suddenly snapped the box shut when he heard the front door open and frantically began to look for a place to hide it. He'd just managed to stuff it behind the sofa and fling himself back onto it when she entered the lounge.

"Hey honey, I'm home," she drawled.

"Oh, my favourite part of the day," he teased back.

"Cute," Calleigh raised her eyebrows.

He laughed and followed her into the kitchen.

"So did you have a good time?"

"Yeah, It was great to catch up. I don't get to see Sarah very often but we still hit it off when we meet up."

Eric smiled and watched as she placed a paper bag down and reached for the drawer to her right, pulling a fork from it. She then removed a clear container from the bag and flipped the lid up, stuck her fork in and took a bite.

"I see you've brought dessert home with you," Eric grinned.

Calleigh laughed and licked the fork clean.

"Well what's a girl to do when there's leftover cheesecake?"

Eric tensed a little; it was still hard for him to hear the word after their run in with Calleigh's father. His eyes met Calleigh's and he sighed at the playful sparkle in her eyes.

"It's not funny. I still can't look at your dad."

"He can't look at you either," she flashed him one of _those_ smiles and she settled herself on the counter before she took another bite of the dessert.

Eric couldn't help but smile back and his eyes settled onto the corner of her mouth where a piece of cheesecake was clinging to it. He moved towards her and gently nudged her legs apart so he could stand between them.

Calleigh raised her eyebrows as she took another bite and sighed happily as he slipped his arms around her and his hands gently began to rub her back. He was still staring at her and if it were anyone but Eric, she'd probably have felt a little self-conscious.

"What?" she smiled as she dug her fork back into her dessert.

"You've got cheesecake on your mouth."

She laughed and moved to wipe it away but Eric stopped her.

"I'll get it," he muttered softly as he leant down and kissed it away, tasting both vanilla and Calleigh. He then eyed the as yet uneaten bite on her fork and moved to take it but she pulled it away.

"I thought you hated cheesecake?" she smiled playfully as she slipped the fork into her mouth.

He laughed and removed the fork, setting it down on the counter beside her.

"I've changed my mind," he whispered, as he leant his forehead on hers.

"Oh really?" she raised her eyebrows knowingly.

"Really," he confirmed, before his mouth met hers again in a gentle, lingering kiss.

Eventually, he pulled back and kissed her forehead. She smiled back at him and rested her arms on his shoulders before she stretched them upwards above her head as a yawn crept in. Eric laughed and brushed a strand of hair off her face.

"Come on sleepy," he said, as he gently lifted her off the counter and into his arms. "Let's get you to bed."

_**/EC/**_

Eric sighed happily as she wriggled in closer, slipping into that nook that she fitted perfectly. He clasped their hands together while he adjusted his head on his pillow and was almost asleep when he felt her wriggle again.

"Cal?" he called sleepily.

He felt her wriggle _again_.

"My feet are cold."

Eric chuckled softly and covered her feet with his own, warming them instantly.

"Better?"

He heard her release a satisfied sigh and he glanced down as her eyelids fluttered closed and she lost herself to sleep. Eric smiled and gently, he planted a kiss on the top of her head before he allowed himself to close his own eyes. A small sigh and a single thought were the last two conscious activities he made as sleep washed over him; '_he didn't know how he was going to survive the next week.'_

* * *

Can I really be that evil and leave you guys hanging there?

Yes :D Because out of the chapters I have written, I'm not sure which one is going to be the next one and I need to have a play with the time shifts and formats.

But as always, next chapter up tomorrow.

Reviews very much appreciated.


	8. Chapter 8

Can anyone else hear an imaginary drum roll? :D

If it's any consolation, It has literally killed me keeping this chapter from you all.

I'm hoping this isn't going to be too 'mushy' but I do warn you, I'm a romantic at heart and I'm giving you two chapters because the next one goes hand in hand with this one.

I've also completely sliced what I had originally written and combined and moved sections so I hope it all makes sense/works.

Oh, and those of you that have seen the most recent two episodes...let's just forget what Cooper did for the purposes of this fic. Actually, for this series.

Anyway here you go, the penultimate chapter.

Enjoy! x

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**Chapter Eight**

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__

_**/EC/ A week later, Thursday, 16:03 /EC/**_

Eric smiled as she shifted herself against him. They were sitting on the beach, Calleigh's back pressed into his chest, his arms holding her close. He kissed her hair as the sun sank and reached across the water, turning it a brilliant orange and together they watched as the golden rays danced with the waves until one by one, they disappeared leaving behind a faint glow as the sun clung onto the day. He pulled her closer to him and sighed; it was moments like this that made him want to freeze time forever. He wanted to ask her now, so much so that he actually thought his heart might explode if if he didn't; sometimes he wished he'd been blessed with Calleigh's patience. Eric smiled again and hugged her tighter still, bringing his lips to rest against her ear where he whispered three little words, feeling her shiver a little as they left his mouth. He kissed the top of her head when she said it back and he nearly asked her there and then and he scolded himself for wanting to cave so easily; '_even Valera had managed to keep quiet for a week.'_ But then he re-thought his plan. Originally, he'd intended to do it over dinner, the traditional way but this moment was too perfect. He glanced back at the rapidly fading pink glow and decided he needed to act fast before the moment was gone. He leant his chin on her head and his heart flipped summersaults as he realised what he was about to ask her. Eric was going to ask her to marry him, to become his fiancée and his future wife...

_**/EC/ Friday morning, 06:57 /EC/**_

Ryan was in the break room, panicking. He had spent all day yesterday looking for the fingernail and he still hadn't been able to find it. His eyes kept flickering to the elevator everytime the doors opened, his lungs momentarily ceasing to work until he was satisfied that Calleigh hadn't arrived yet. _'She was going to kill him.'_ He just hoped that her day off with Eric had relaxed her enough to make it clean and fast.

"Ryan?"

He snapped his head away from the elevator and turned to look at Valera; he hadn't even heard her enter the room.

"Ryan are you O.K?" she called as she began to search for Eric's cubano.

He brought his hands to his face and rubbed his eyes.

"That bad huh?" Valera asked.

Ryan nodded. "I still haven't found the fingernail."

Valera bit her lip, trying to prevent a smile from spreading across her mouth as her eyes connected with Cooper's through the glass.

"I wonder how Calleigh will do it?" she teased.

"Ten bucks says she'll use her gun." Dan grinned as he entered the room.

"See I think that's too predictable, too humane." Valera returned the grin but her mouth twitched to a pout when she realised Eric's cubano wasn't in any of the usual hiding places.

Ryan glared at them, the rest of his body frozen. He'd thought of the countless ways that Calleigh could kill him and quite frankly, they all pretty much sucked.

"Shut up," he growled as Cooper began to laugh.

His eyes flickered to the elevator again when he caught sight of the doors opening in the glass. _'Oh God, she's here.'_ Ryan watched as Eric muttered something to Calleigh and she laughed, her eyes sparkling playfully. He felt his body relax a little at her obvious good mood and hoped that perhaps she'd take pity on him as a result. He froze again as her eyes found his and they darkened considerably; _'that's a no then.'_ Ryan glanced over at Cooper and Valera who were both attempting to stifle a laugh and failing, badly. He moved his eyes back to Calleigh once more and took a deep breath as she approached the room. He released it when Eric pulled her back to whisper something into her ear, inadvertently stalling her.

"Shut up!" he growled again as a giggle broke through from Valera.

Ryan turned to leave; he was going to meet Calleigh halfway, not wanting to be in the same room as his two _**ex**_ friends any longer and he missed the knowing look that they exchanged.

"So you don't want this then?" Cooper's voice stopped him.

Ryan spun round to find Dan holding up an evidence bag, the words _'Evidence item 12'_ written neatly across it in Calleigh's handwriting. His eyes widened.

"You're not funny," he breathed, trying to contain both his anger and humiliation.

"Don't know what you're talking about," Valera feigned innocence.

Ryan glared back at her.

"Hey, you want it or not?" Cooper shrugged.

Ryan grabbed the bag, his eyes burning dangerously.

"How long have you guys had this?"

Cooper glanced at Valera who shrugged.

"Found it before we left last night, so – "

"Around twelve hours?" Cooper finished her sentence.

Their colleague's eyes shot daggers and they watched as he took a step back, bringing his hands to rest on the back of his head as he struggled to keep control.

"You both," he stated tightly, pointing to the both of them. "Are going to pay."

Before they could reply, another voice entered the room.

"Pay for what?" Calleigh's green eyes connected with his.

"Nothing," Ryan croaked. He was still a bit scared even though he now had the evidence. He caught sight of Eric heading for the Trace lab through the glass and cursed his luck; '_she was always softer when he was around.'_

"You found it then?"

He looked back at Calleigh; her eyes were focused on his hand, the darkness in them lifting a little. Ryan merely nodded, his fear and anger temporarily rendering him speechless.

"Yeah, the trial starts at ten," he finally managed.

Calleigh smiled, her eyes curiously darting around the room. Valera was silently giggling into her coffee while Dan's mouth was twitching in a rather peculiar way. Her smile turned to a knowing one before her gaze settled on Ryan once more.

"Good, you best put that somewhere safe then." She nodded to the bag in his hand.

Ryan forced an uneasy smile and left the room, quickly.

As soon as he was gone, Valera and Cooper lost control.

"Did I miss something here?" Calleigh asked them, a little curious. She knew they'd obviously played some sort of prank on their colleague, but she wasn't quite sure what.

Valera bit her lip and glanced at Cooper. She didn't particularly want to tell her the details, was a little scared that she might erupt at them. She knew Calleigh liked to tease Ryan as much as the rest of them but at work, she was a professional through and through and the idea of telling her that she and Dan had held onto some key evidence purely to panic Ryan was quite frankly, very scary. Another thought popped into her mind as she wondered whether Eric had done it yet and whether Calleigh had said yes. She glanced down at Calleigh's ring finger and stifled a frown when she realised her line of sight was blocked by the table.

"Nope," she finally answered Calleigh's question as she set her mug down on the side.

Calleigh's gaze flickered curiously between both the DNA specialist and Cooper and she smiled knowingly at Valera. She couldn't help but wonder if Dan knew how Maxine felt yet. Cooper noticed the smile and frowned but before he could ask what was going on, Valera left the room.

Calleigh's eyes found Dan's and she raised her eyebrows. She watched as the man scratched his head nervously and shrugged, before he followed Valera out.

_**/EC/**_

"Hey, Valera?" Cooper caught up to her. "What uh, what was that about?"

"Oh," she shrugged casually. "We're dating now."

She left him stood there, frozen in the hallway as confusion spread through him. _'What?'_

_**/EC/**_

Calleigh chuckled, a little confused as to what she'd just witnessed and made a mental note to corner Ryan later. She moved over to the coffee maker and her mouth toyed with a smile when she realised it currently housed regular coffee. _'Valera hadn't been able to find his cubano.'_ Still chuckling to herself, she reached for the fourth cupboard on the right and moved several jars of, well she wasn't quite sure; she'd given up trying to work out Cooper's eating habits long ago. She smiled when she found it and with a triumphant sigh, she busied herself with the coffee maker. She reached down when her pager went.

_If you're stealing my cubano, bring me some too. E x_

Calleigh shook her head and laughed as she pulled out a second mug from a cupboard on the left.

_**/EC/**_

She found him in the trace lab, running some prints through AFIS.

"What's that?" she asked curiously, handing him his mug.

"Just trying a new lead on an old case," Eric replied, taking a sip from it. "Valera didn't see you did she?" he raised an eyebrow.

Calleigh flashed him one of _those_ smiles and shook her head.

He grinned back at her and set his mug down before he reached for her left hand and glanced down at it, his grin widening at the sight.

_**/EC/ Thursday, 16:07 /EC/**_

Calleigh felt Eric release her from his body and watched as he shifted his position so that he was sat next her. He reached for her arm and spun them both round so that they were facing one another.

"Eric?" Calleigh eyed him curiously.

He smiled and reached for her other arm, pulling her closer to him and he rested his forehead against hers, trying to think about how best to ask; he hadn't actually planned this part, had just assumed that he would know what to say when the moment arrived. He took a second to calm himself as his heart threatened to explode through his chest and he closed his eyes as he considered all the possible ways he could do it. _'Should he give a speech?' 'Should he give her the ring before or after?' 'Should he ask with her standing up, him kneeling?'_

Calleigh's eyes were staring at his closed ones. Whilst her curiosity had soared to new heights, she found that she was a little concerned and the moment was becoming increasingly intense.

"Eric?" she whispered, trying again.

His eyes flew open, meeting her green ones and in that instant, he knew how to do it. He gently removed a hand from her arm and felt for the little box in his trouser pocket. Since he'd bought it, he'd taken it everywhere with him for fear of losing it or her finding it. His fingers clasped around the smooth surface and he began to speak.

"Calleigh," he paused, trying to still his heart beat. "Will you marry me?"

He slowly removed the box from his pocket and flipped the lid open in front of her. He felt his lungs stop working when he saw her answer already forming in her eyes.

Calleigh froze. The past week suddenly made sense; all the secrecy, all the evasion, everything. Her heart was screaming an answer inside of her but her brain hadn't quite caught up yet. She thought back to that question Valera had asked her a little while ago and smiled when she realised that this is where she saw her relationship with Eric going; _'this was what she wanted.'_ She looked down at the contents of the box that Eric was holding out to her and raised her eyes back to his as her answer formed on her lips.

"Yes," she whispered, was the only word she could manage. It didn't matter though, because that single word spoke volumes.

Eric's lungs kicked back into life and and a grin pulled at his mouth, mirroring hers. He pulled her into his body and wrapped his arms around her while he kissed the top of her head. He only released her when he remembered the engagement ring and he slowly slid it onto her ring finger; _'it fitted perfectly.'_ He raised his eyes back to Calleigh's as she flashed him one of _those _smiles and then together, they turned their heads to the horizon where the sun gave a final golden wave before it disappeared into the ocean...

* * *

Is it weird that I'm feeling all gooey over my own fic? Am I even allowed to? :D

Give me a few minutes and I'll upload the next chapter, I've just got to proof read it.


	9. Chapter 9

Well, here we are. I added this little chapter to ensure a finality about the series because I really don't think I can take it anywhere else. The 'one-liner music joke' is a little stretched now and I think I should give Ryan a break from his role as comic relief, at least for a little while anyway ;)

This chapter is dedicated to those of you who have followed this series unwaveringly and have ensured that I kept it up :D You guys know who you are.

So, without further ado...second update for today, the **final** chapter of Acrylic and the **final **chapter of the series.

Enjoy! x

* * *

**Chapter Nine**

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_**/EC/ Two years later… /EC/**_

Calleigh smiled as she nudged open the door; the house was quiet. She took a step forwards into the hallway and placed her bag down on the side, looking up when she heard a quiet gurgle. The small figure stumbled towards her and gurgled again as a smile that looked eerily like her own spread across his features. She laughed and bent down to lift him up and drew an Eskimo kiss across his skin.

"How's my little man?"

"Just like his mother," a voice called from the doorway to the lounge. Eric emerged through it and walked towards her. "Perfect," he whispered as he placed a kiss on her cheek.

She flashed him one of _those_ smiles and moved forwards into the lounge where she settled their son on the carpet in front of a pile of his toys. Eric followed her and sat himself on the couch, sighing happily at the sight. The nanny had phoned in sick that morning and Eric's parents had gone on a short vacation and so after a lot of fuss from Calleigh, Eric had volunteered to stay home with little Adam. She'd wanted to stay but Horatio needed her to work on a case and Eric had literally had to force her out of the door; as much as Calleigh loved her job, she loved her son more.

Once Calleigh was satisfied that Adam was happy where she'd placed him, she joined Eric on the sofa and rested her head in his lap. She smiled up at him as he began to stroke her hair and clasped his other hand in hers.

"How was work?" he asked.

"Same as always," she smiled.

Eric nodded and they both looked over as Adam emitted another gurgle as he began to chew on the left foot of his teddy bear. Eric looked down as Calleigh laughed and his mouth settled onto a pout.

"I've already had to wash that today. He managed to get his lunch all over it."

She leveled a mock look of shock at him.

"Since when do you know how to use the washing machine?"

"Funny," he raised his eyebrows. "I hand washed it actually."

Calleigh laughed again and a knowing smile tugged at her mouth. She turned her eyes back to their son and watched as he clapped his hands together and emitted a squeal of delight. Eric followed her gaze and smiled.

"You ever think about trying for another one?"

Calleigh snapped her eyes back to his and raised her eyebrows.

"Eric, the word 'hurts' doesn't even come close to describing the pain of giving birth."

He laughed and leant down to kiss her forehead.

"I know, but it's definitely worth it, don't you think?"

She eyed him carefully before she flashed him one of _those_ smiles and squeezed his hand.

"Well then I guess it's a good thing we don't have to try."

Eric stared blankly at her for a moment, not quite understanding, until realisation crept in and a smile tugged at his mouth.

"When did you -"

"I took a pregnancy test at work this morning. I've been thinking that I might be for a few days now," she looked down at their hands before she raised her eyes back up to Eric. "Test came back positive."

She watched as Eric's smile grew and felt him squeeze her hand back. He shifted his body so that his legs were now on the sofa either side of her and pulled her back into his chest, where his heart was pounding against his skin. He kissed the top of her head and looked back at their son who was slowly picking his way towards the sofa. Calleigh laughed and gently removed her hands from Eric's so that she could pick him up and she carefully sat him down in her lap. Eric's hands found her stomach where he began to caress gently and he laughed when Adam reached out to tug at Calleigh's hair, emitting another gurgle as he did so. Eric smiled; _'he was a very, very lucky man.'_

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If you have the time, please tell me what your favourite moment of the series was, or things that you particulalry liked so I know what to include in future fics. :D

Thank you for reading.


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